Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay
This article addresses the House of Soviets, the most prominent building in the centre of Kaliningrad, Russia. Using Juhani Pallasmaa’s theory of “sixth sense”, the building is seen through notions of atmospheres and diffusion, rather than the focused attention implied by its formalist construction....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | fra |
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UMR 1563 « Ambiances Architectures Urbanités »
2019-01-01
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| Series: | Ambiances |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/ambiances/2053 |
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| author | Michael Amundsen |
| author_facet | Michael Amundsen |
| author_sort | Michael Amundsen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article addresses the House of Soviets, the most prominent building in the centre of Kaliningrad, Russia. Using Juhani Pallasmaa’s theory of “sixth sense”, the building is seen through notions of atmospheres and diffusion, rather than the focused attention implied by its formalist construction. Local people have nicknamed the building the “monster” or “robot”, for its giant size and forbidding appearance. However, its status as an urban ruin implies spatial and temporal meanings that have “humanized” the building. The article focuses on the experience of urban exploration in the House of Soviets for one afternoon in the spring of 2013 with two Kaliningrad residents. This paper avers that the changing form of the House of Soviets in its state of decay promotes its appreciation as a work of art as it falls apart. Decrepitude and pillage, vandalism and littering are reclaiming the space as it promotes sensory imagination and engagement with “the terror of time”. The article includes photographs taken while exploring the building. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a26cb7ca283d4b87a99c44d1f17515ca |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2266-839X |
| language | fra |
| publishDate | 2019-01-01 |
| publisher | UMR 1563 « Ambiances Architectures Urbanités » |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ambiances |
| spelling | doaj-art-a26cb7ca283d4b87a99c44d1f17515ca2025-01-13T16:06:12ZfraUMR 1563 « Ambiances Architectures Urbanités »Ambiances2266-839X2019-01-0110.4000/ambiances.2053Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decayMichael AmundsenThis article addresses the House of Soviets, the most prominent building in the centre of Kaliningrad, Russia. Using Juhani Pallasmaa’s theory of “sixth sense”, the building is seen through notions of atmospheres and diffusion, rather than the focused attention implied by its formalist construction. Local people have nicknamed the building the “monster” or “robot”, for its giant size and forbidding appearance. However, its status as an urban ruin implies spatial and temporal meanings that have “humanized” the building. The article focuses on the experience of urban exploration in the House of Soviets for one afternoon in the spring of 2013 with two Kaliningrad residents. This paper avers that the changing form of the House of Soviets in its state of decay promotes its appreciation as a work of art as it falls apart. Decrepitude and pillage, vandalism and littering are reclaiming the space as it promotes sensory imagination and engagement with “the terror of time”. The article includes photographs taken while exploring the building.https://journals.openedition.org/ambiances/2053House of Sovietssixth senseurban ruindecaytime |
| spellingShingle | Michael Amundsen Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay Ambiances House of Soviets sixth sense urban ruin decay time |
| title | Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay |
| title_full | Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay |
| title_fullStr | Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay |
| title_full_unstemmed | Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay |
| title_short | Humanizing the robot: Kaliningrad’s House of Soviets and the state of decay |
| title_sort | humanizing the robot kaliningrad s house of soviets and the state of decay |
| topic | House of Soviets sixth sense urban ruin decay time |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/ambiances/2053 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michaelamundsen humanizingtherobotkaliningradshouseofsovietsandthestateofdecay |